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Who can resist Pluto TV’s pitch for free TV when the spot features David Hasselhoff playing nine characters, including himself?
That wasn’t how the above spot started out, although “the Hoff was always our top pick to host,” said Fran Hazeldine, senior vice president and head of marketing at the ViacomCBS-owned free TV streaming service. “He’s a worldwide entertainment legend who combines 80s nostalgia and internet-era relevance. That retro-future quality fits perfectly with Pluto TV.”
Once Hoff was on board, the plan was to cast eight more actors to play the other parts, but during a brainstorm with the writers, Hoff and team came up with the idea for him to play all the parts, “which was brilliant for the creative and also minimized the logistical COVID-19 requirements,” said Hema Mulchandani, executive producer and co-owner at creative agency Jonas&Co, which produced the spot as well as provided post-production and visual effects.
The shoot included two days with Hasselhoff playing the nine different roles as well as one “jam-packed fitting and make-up testing day,” said Mulchandani.
“We established all those looks beforehand so that once the shoot started we could jam through all the different set-ups. We needed to make sure we could work as quickly as possible to grab the nearly 150 live-action plates that are fused together to make this spot,” she continued.
In addition, the team needed a day to build and light the sets. “It was all to ensure that our two shoot days were all about David’s performance. We never wanted him waiting for the set to be ready. It’s about O.H.Y: Optimum Hoff Yield.”
Like all shoots these days, the team also built in time to incorporate the logistics required to shoot during COVID, such as testing the crew 48 hours in advance, disinfecting the sets and so forth.
“It’s especially important to get our ducks in a row because the necessary COVID protocol slows things down a bit but we have it down by now,” Mulchandani said.
Once shooting and editing was complete, “our special effects wizards dove in and stitched together all the Hoffs into the Hoff Multiverse,” she said.
“The Hoff Multiverse is a combination of familiarity doused with continuous surprise—kind of like the feeling of scanning through the myriad channels on Pluto TV—dumbfoundedly thinking, ‘How can this be free? What planet am I on?’” said Jonas Morganstein, creative director and co-owner, Jonas&Co.
“So we made the ultimate hyperreal infomercial—layering on Hoff after Hoff after Hoff, starting with David as the Hoff Host and then twisting things more and more surreal with new characters until going full tilt with the testimonials montage of happy customers all played by Hasselhoff. We want the viewers to respond, “Wow, Hoff - I didn’t know you had it in you!” Just like Pluto TV. You really are surprised when you dig in and realize what you can find.”
CREDITS
Client: Pluto TV
Pluto TV SVP, Marketing: Fran Hazeldine
Pluto TV VP, Brand: Mathew Brian
Pluto TV Creative Director: Caspar Nonner
Pluto TV Writers: Jeremy Frigo, Mike Truesdale
Pluto TV Animator: Jori Federighi
Pluto TV Brand Manager: Elizabeth Anderson
Production Company: Jonas & Co
Jonas&Co Executive Producer: Hema Mulchandani
Jonas&Co Creative Director: Jonas Morganstein
Jonas&Co Writer: Andrew Corbet
Jonas&Co Line Producer: Lisa Dabao Meyer
Jonas&Co Editor: Daniel Reitzenstein